Replacement
by WhatifStoryTeller
Summary: Marine life is hard without the troubles of a overbearing grandfather and unbreakable promises. At least with a friend, a coward, you have someone to count on to get through these five years of hell. Fem!Luffy
1. Chapter 1

Year 1

The storm roared outside of the window. The sheets shook under the lighting streaked sky. His head popped up and covered his ears with his pillows. This was too intense. Being on a metal vessel during a lighting storm; but they were nowhere near a shore. His fingers felt against his nightstand for his glasses. Quickly he pulled them on before scrambling out of the bed with his sheets.

In this place, he only knew of one place of comfort. One place that odds of getting stuck with lighting were lesser than shaking in his bedroom that was located on the outline of the ship. He slipped outside of his room into the darkness of the hallway. Only every other two lights were lit, a way to save candles until the next stop. His feet, covered in grimy socks, walked down the path. Soon he came to a staircase, one that would lead to his destination.

He walked down until he appeared at the bottom. This was the storage and maintenance area of the ship. He came to a stop and entered the door on his right. The room was already lit by a single candle. The floor was made out of wood that crept with each foot. A shadow moved and he smiled.

She was already there.

"Lu!" he grinned.

The girl broke out into a grin that spread from one ear to the other. Her long eyelashes brushed against her smooth skin. "You know where the apple bins are?" Was the first thing out of her mouth.

He looked behind, "If c-captain finds out...we w- would be in trouble."

"But I'm hungry-!" her back pressed against the boxes as she moaned and grunted. Within a few seconds she went from pouting to snickering. She stood up and the candle flickered. Lids of the boxes were thrown off as she searched through them.

"Luf-f! Stop!" the boy panicked. "Ga-Garp will have our heads if he finds out!"

"Humfhsk sknha," she spoke. He glanced back and dropped his blanket on the ground. Her mouth was stuffed with apples that she found.

"What are you doing?! If he finds out he-he-he could throw us off the ship! Prison! Training course! STRANDED!"

"Kuom duwn, Kuby," Luffy managed to said.

"How can I?"

"Stop wurryin! Gramps won't even notice." She grabbed an apple, "Here," she threw it.

He didn't even notice. The apple slammed into his chest and he was pushed against a stack of boxes that piled onto him. Uniforms all jumbled a heavy bag of grain, practice targets, and bullets laid on top of him. Quickly Luffy grabbed him out of the mess. "Man, you are clumsy," she snickered.

"...because of you," he whispered. Coby rolled his eyes and began to pack the supplies back in the boxes; hoping no one would notice. The candle flickered and the flame went out. "AH!" he squealed.

"Uh...Where's the matches?" the black haired girl questioned. Her hands felt around in the darkness until she felt Coby's shoulder. The items in his arm fell to the ground and he jumped. Then he started panting, hoping to steady his heartbeat.

"Matches...matches...no ghosts...no ligh-"

Thunder roared outside. Rain splashed against the metal outside.

"There! Found it!" Luffy smiled in the darkness as she pulled the box of matches, handing it to Coby.

"These...aren't matches. They are bullets..."

"Oh...do you have any?"

"Nope. What happened to yours?"

The girl shrugged. "I had them when I came, but...I lost them." He groaned. The two crawled on the ground. Their hands felt against the wooden crates searching for them. Finally Coby found the small box of matches. He gave a quick cheer before lighting a match and restarting the candle. He grinned at the light, and Luffy smiled as she sat down; forgetting about apples for now. The two sat across from the candle, and Coby covered up in the blanket.

"Why are you down here?" he questioned.

"Oh...I couldn't get back to bed," she stated.

That was her normal reply; one that he gotten many times before. He only kept asking in hopes of a different answer, but it never came. He sat in silence, one that he didn't like. "It was storming hard. I just couldn't get to sleep."

"What? Scared?" she snickered.

He blushed and turned away. Maybe he was a bit afraid of the lighting. There was a large possibly of getting hit.


	2. Chapter 2

Year 2

"Maggots! You can do better than that!" The old man bickered from the sidelines.

Marines ran down the training course; which was the whole island. An island that climate wasn't stable. In one area snow covered hills. Hotspots erupted.

The old man watched from a higher point. Speakers were built throughout the island, which blasted every time he yelled. Veins on his body were tensed. His face was hard and red with brute might. "FINISH THIS COURSE UNLESS YOU WANT TO GET LEFT HERE!"

Luffy jumped over a fallen tree. Sweat began to drench her training shirt. A boy with pink hair came up from behind her. In a burst of speed, he matched her pace. "Luffy! You are going the wrong way! Exit is north!"

"Huh?" she glanced over. Within that second, she ran into a tree and fell back onto the ground. "Ouch! Man, Coby," she grumbled as she gotten up.

"The exit. North. You are going East."

"But north is where the sun is!"

"Look! Moss on trees! They are facing north!"

"It is?" she questioned as she scratched her head. "Ok, thanks!" she nodded and took off again in the right direction.

"You...could have waited for me," he groaned. He took a quick breath before once again starting on the right path; right behind Luffy. He couldn't draw any more strength to catch back up with Luffy.

"YOU CALL YOURSELVES MARINES? EVEN TODDLERS COULD DO BETTER THAN YOU GUYS!" Garp's voice echoed through the trees. Coby covered his ears and shivered. That man didn't even need a speaker when his yell alone could be heard throughout the whole island.

He halted. In front of him was a river; too wide for him to even jump across and too deep for him to walk across. He searched downstream and upstream for any logs or ground bridges. Luffy must have already passed this point. In front of him was the jungle area. So far he hasn't seen much animal life. The biomes were too small for animals to reproduce. He licked his lips and looked above.

Veins.

Coby turned to the nearest tree, there was a vein that would swing him across the river. He climbed up the bark and onto the branch. His foot began to slip, so he caught the vein before he could fall down. With a push, he swung across the river and jumped down onto the shore. His head jerked up when he heard sounds of footprints. _'Must be the others,_' he thought and pushes it into the back of his mind. He needed to focus on this track instead of wondering about the other marines-in-training.

"SUN'S SETTING IN LESS THAN AN HOUR! THOSE WHO FINISH BEFORE THEN GETS DINNER!"

Coby cursed. Now there was no way he could catch up with Luffy now. She would be speeding to the finish line without waiting for him. And now that there was a reward from finishing, others would appear; he would get left behind in the horde.

A tongue rolled along his dried lips. A hand pushed back his pink hair, wiping away the sweat. With a breath, he ran as fast as he could. He jumped over tree roots, dodged veins that hanged too low, and followed an unclear path between the scattered trees.

Green and brown. Those were the only colors he could spot in the thick forest. He could barely notice the blue that faintly appeared between the trees. "So close!" he panted. His breaths were short as fast as his heartbeats were.

A tree root. He fell over it. His shoe slipped underneath and he fell back onto the ground. He was panting so much that he couldn't calm down long enough to think. It was only when a hand appeared, he finally looked up.

"Come on before it gets cold," Luffy grumbled.

He smiled and took her outstretched arm; pulling himself up. "Thanks," he said while itching his head and looking at the ground.

"No problem. But next time get here faster."

"Sure. I will try too."

She laughed. Her medium black hair jiggled in the wind. She held onto his hand and jogged forward to the shoreline. There it was.

The Finish Line.

He looked around; there were only two others who made it.

His dirty shoes stepped over the finish line. "Finally!" he cheered. "I'm never going back through there again!"

"FOOD TIME!" she yelled before him. The two raced onto the ship that was docked. Before they even entered the ship, they could already smell the food. All of the scents made their mouths watered. Coby pushed on the door and they were welcomed with a feast of food of all different types. Luffy hurried to one end of the table. One filled with meats.

Coby picked up a plate from the end and picked out his meal by going down the tables instead of eating it all. Before he could even put one into his mouth, he felt the room get colder.

The door on the staircase opened.

His voice pierced his ears. "REDO!"

"Gramps!" Luffy uttered as she closed her ears.

"Maggot Coby. You must redo the track without any help. As do you, Luffy."

Coby opened his mouth in protest, "B-But we ar-" He was interrupted.

"When you are left in a jungle all alone, does teamwork solve anything?"

"But teamwork gets stuff don-"

"You all are working on skills. Can't improve if using someone else."

"No fair, Gramps," muttered Luffy. "Can't we eat at least?"

"RESPECT ME! YOU BRAT!" He punched her on her forehead.

She pulled back in pain and grumbled at her grandfather. "Come on, Old man. We finished it!"

He looked away. Something changed in his eyes; like a distant memory. It happened so suddenly, that neither noticed. Within a minute the two were outside the ship. His foot pulled back and kicked them all the way across the island. Right on the starting point. They landed on the sand with their butts in the air.

"Damn it," she grumbled.


	3. Chapter 3

Year 3

Coby stepped across the ship and glazed at her short hair. It was shifted backwards by the blowing breeze. He touched her shoulder, and her head whipped around to look. "What's up?" she questioned quickly.

"Garp-san just gotten off the phone with Sengoku-san. Turns out someone's making trouble in our area, so we are heading there."

"Finally some action. It was starting to get boring~" she moaned as she shoves her hair behind her ears.

He chuckled at her restlessness- which was very much like her- but something caught his glazed in the ocean. "What's that? It's coming towards us!" he hopped up and down.

She peered over the rails. "It's a...sh-?"

"PIRATES! HEADING TOWARDS US!" the marine in the birdnest called out.

"WEREN'T YOU SUPPOSE TO WATCH FOR THIS? THEY ARE ALREADY CLOSE!" The pink haired boy nervously yelled. He looked at Garp's door as it slammed opened. The old man stepped outside of the ship and walked across to the figure head. His eyes were dark as the waves went higher and higher; he was in the middle of eating when Sengoku called- a time everyone knew not to bother the elder. "Everyone to your post! Someone, go get the cannons."

_'He's not playing...'_ Coby gulped.

A higher ranked marine pulled a case of newly polish cannonballs from the deck. He placed them to the right of Garp. The old man stretched out his fingers. Without looking up, he reached out for one of black shiny balls. With the strength of 100 men, he threw the cannonball across the deck, the sea, landing right on the pirate's ship. The cannonball clashed onto their deck; breaking the boards. The sudden added pressure caused the ship to stir in the water.

"Leave some for the rest of us!" Luffy grumbled.

"Then ya better get swimming!"

She crossed her arms over her chest until she gotten an idea. Luffy could not swim for the death of her; something that she couldn't do since childhood; but she could still cause some damage from this side. The black haired beauty grabbed one of the cannonballs and threw it herself. The cannonball sloped over to the pirate's deck, landing close to the first. It made the distance, but not the same damage Garp caused with his cannonball. It barely made a dent on their ship.

"You gotta hit harder, girl. Else you are just wasting them."

She stared at her grandfather before taking another shot at the same time Garp did. The two cannonballs flew through the sky, their weight caused them to weight downwards. Luffy's cannon was aimed higher and landed close to the birdnest of the pirate ship. Garp's ball damaged the wheel. Even with the distance, they could hear the cry from the pirates. "ABORT!" the shouted over and over again.

"They aren't getting away yet," Garp growled. He pointed to the marine from earlier, "Man the wheel, we are going after them."

The blond haired marine nodded and ran up the stairs to the wheel. The other marines, including Luffy and Coby, went into routine to speed the ship up. They hauled the ropes up on the poles, and held them tightly. The ship roared in the sea and sped after the troublemakers. With the deck in ruins, their escape was halted.

Luffy hopped from the boat and onto the pirate's ship. Now this was the action she was waiting for. The ship had fourteen pirates. All of them scrambled away from that side of the ship. The girl aimed for the wheel where several were taking shelter. She unsheathed her whips from the back of her jacket. She rather go hand-to-hand, but she used her whips for several enemies or to cut the distance.

Coby soon joined her. His one sword glisten in the sunlight. His stance was wrong, something Garp would noticed, but such detail mean nothing at the moment. He charged as one of them leaped for Luffy's whips. The girl stuck the pirate right in the stomach, he hunched back and pulled on his stomach; groaning as he did so. "Nice," the pink haired stated as he slashed at another pirate. Their swords clashed against each other.

Other marines appeared and battle the remaining pirates. Luffy's fight was settled quickly with two slashes from her whips. Coby's was a bit longer as they both used swords. The battle finally ended once Coby dealt a blow to the pirate's shoulder.

"They got meat," Luffy stated. She ran downstairs and inside the ship; which was already cleared out of enemies. After one attempt, she found the kitchen. Inside was a fridge, packed with already made meals. She grinned from ear to ear. "All the meat they could want..." Drool dripped.

The fridge was empty in minutes.


	4. Chapter 4

Year 4

The fort was silence and calm. Waves gently brushed against the edges. Paths glowed with moonlight. Marines traveled across the grounds, heading to their lookout points. Rooms were dark as lieutenants slept. But those in higher ranks were gathered across for a midnight meeting. Sengoku's office was lit, as were others that were next to his. All other than Garp's room. His room was dimly lit by a single candle. His shadow spread across the wall. His back was hunched over as he picked up a piece of paper.

"Stupid brat," he uttered lowly. He placed the picture back into the box. He could faintly hear the brat's remark in a rude manner. The old man gave a vaguely smile. "Could have been an..." He couldn't finish that sentence.

He leaned back in his bed and remembered when the youngster started showing promise. But Garp knew it once he laid eyes on the brat. Black hair that sprawled in every which way. Hands that riddled with dirt that even ten bathes couldn't wash away. Stomach the size of a horde of elephants. Enough combat skills that would save lives.

A fighter.

That was what Garp trained the youngster to be. Years of never-ending training. The kid was showing a promise of a great marine, one even better than himself. "If only...different dreams..."

Across the fort was the lieutenants' building. All lights were out as they slept. Each building held five stories. Girls lived on the lower levels, while males took their rooms on the top three levels. On the second floor came a piercing scream. It was sudden that shook people awake. They hopped out of their beds without any knowledge. Some ran out of their rooms to the place where the scream came from.

Coby was covering his ears. He just awoke, and didn't know why. It wasn't until his blond roommate busted through the door. "Coby! It's Luffy!"

"Huh?! Wha-?"

"Come on!" He pulled on Coby's arm. The pink haired pushed past him and ran down the stairs to the second level. There was a thong in the hallway, he had to push people out of the way to even get through. "What's wrong?"

He was pushed into her room. There she was jumbled in her blankets. Her arms and legs shaking. Wet black hair was spread out on her drenched pillow. Her roommate and others were throwing water on her, but she still wouldn't wake. "Stop! She's gonna drown!"

As soon as those words came out of his month, Luffy gave another piercing squeal. Coby moved forward and started shaking her. With a whisper, she said something, but he couldn't hear it. "Come on, Luffy! Wake up!"

"She not even responding to anything!" her roommate uttered. The blonde wiped her forehead and looked around. "Someone! Go call for help! Ginny?! Go!" A short little brunette gasped and looked down. It wasn't until others started to push her, that she left. She hurried down the hallway.

"Just what happened?"

"Everyone was sleeping! And she just...screamed out of nowhere!" the girl tried to explain.

"...By any chance, does anyone have meat on there?"

They glanced around, hoping for someone to step forward. Coby stared at his roommate and he glanced around, hoping the pink haired would look elsewhere. Helmeppo groaned and marched out of the crowd. At the very end of the hallway, was a storage closet. There wasn't meat, or much else in there, but it was the closest food source they had. He pulled out a bin of oranges and jerky, then went back to the room. People made way for him to go through, and he handed Coby the jerky and oranges. "Not much, but it's lightout everywhere."

"Thanks," he nodded and took the food_. 'I hope this actually works,'_ he thought. This was only something that he thought of, but if this worked, then he could be the hero...for the night. "Luffy, look what I got. Some juicy fresh," behind him Helmeppo bite his upper lip, "Meat. Come and get it before it's gone."

The girl started wiggling around in her bed. "Huhmm? Wattum?" she spoke.

"Meat~!" Coby taunted with the jerky.

Her hands rose and grabbed the meat from his hands. Everyone released their breath that they have been holding. She chew on the tough jerky and raised her head. The girl glanced around the room, looking at the faces. "Is there like a show or something?" she wandered out loud.

"Baka..." mumbled one of them. The rest soon quickly went back to bed, leaving Coby and Helmeppo there. Luffy's roommate crawled back into bed. "Thanks Cody."

_'Close enough,'_ he thought. "No proble-"

Luffy hopped out of her bed and made her way to the door. Helmeppo glanced over to him and pointed at the girl; a slience exchange. Coby nodded and followed after her, "Sorry about going into your room." The girl just nodded and laid her head on the pillow. The blonde boy left shortly afterwards, closing the door behind him.

"Luffy, wait for me," Coby uttered, but she was already gone. He already knew where she was. On the roof. He walked up the staircase to the rooftop. Their building was facing the ocean that surrounded the fort. Luffy sat on the edge and looked out into the moonlight.

"It's already summer..." She said without glancing back.

"Yeah, the seasons are changing," he uttered as he walked towards her.

"I don't like today."

"But it hasn't even began. It's still night."

"I know I won't like today," she corrected herself.

"Because of," he pointed to the staircase, "that?"

"That?" she questioned.

"Uh...nevermind. Just what's wrong with today?"

"Everything."

Her words hanged there. Coby sat down behind her. The moon was starting to lower into the horizon. Soon the sun will come up and their watches will began; just like every other day. Her hair danced into the night breeze. Once Coby had a closer look at Luffy, he could see her paleness and the sweat that glistened on her neck. She wasn't one to be depressed, or frightened. It was unlike her.

"Don't you ever want to leave?"

The young man took a moment. The question came out of nowhere. He straighten his back and thought for a moment. "Sometimes. I wish I could skip this training and just join the higher ranks. But if I'm going to be admiral, then it's worth it. Even if it's painful and a bore."

"No. I meant...get out of this place. All together."

"I...it would be nice, but we still have our duties here."

Once again silence. The moon finally disappeared into the horizon. The sky began to lighten up. The marines on watch changed positions.

"Coby."

He looked at her, "Yeah?"

"I'm leaving."

"WHAT?! WHY? WHEN? WHY?!"

She looked into the distance. Her hand felt along the cloth that wrapped around her neck to look like a necklace. She was somewhere else, in a distant memory that was a decade ago. "I wasn't suppose to be a marine."

"But Garp. He's your grandfather. And you been training here to become just like your grandfather! You said you wanted to travel the seas! Wanted to fulfill your promises! Wanted to be as strong as you could!"

"I do. I just don't want to do them here, under the name of marine."

"Then under what name?"

She took a moment to answer. "Pirate King."

"GOL D. ROGER?" he blurted out the first thing that popped into his mind. "THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE!" She didn't even look angry at him, even if he was denying her dream. She was too lost in time; in her our little world. "Luffy! Look at me! Please tell me you are kidding."

"I'm not. It's always been my dream. Thi-I," she was tongue tied.

He sat next to her and looked at the side of her face, "What?"

"This life was meant for someone else, not for me. I want to be the freest person in the world, without a government system holding me down. That's the only way to fulfill my promises."

"Then..." he wanted to phased this carefully, "Why are you here? Isn't marines and pirates enemies, the totally opposite of each other?"

"I'm just a replacement."

"What?"

She didn't answer. She just stayed in her place and watched the sky. Soon the sun appeared and their building was awake by morning bells. "I'm still leaving."


	5. Chapter 5

Year 5

He wrapped his scarf around his neck in front of the mirror. Around it was pictures taken from the newspaper. He grinned at each one. It was in an order of events, each one getting bigger than the last one. Her face. That was all there was that could make him smile. A face that he could only see on paper. Next to that piece of paper was a letter. It was handwritten, badly.

_'Coby._

_See you soon._

_-Next Pirate King, Luffy'  
_

It was lonely once Luffy escaped. She ran for it, and he stayed. He didn't know what she meant by replacement, but he knew she was having more fun than ever; but she still hasn't forgotten their promise. Unlike her, he liked this life. He knew what's going on most days. It was schedule, and worked him to the bone. He gained muscles once he was placed on ship as a permanent with another marine. His pink hair grew out, enough that he had to wrap a cloth around it to keep it from getting into his eyes, which glasses no longer there.

* * *

_A raft sat in the water. Some supplies filled a small sack. The girl hopped onto the raft. "It's time."_

_"Don't forget about me," he grinned._

_"You're my nakama! I wouldn't!" she gave a small pout then snickered. "We will met again. Maybe not soon, bu-"_

_"Two years. Let's see each other," he quickly stated. He didn't want to lose this chance, not when she was minutes away from leaving his life. He already lost enough people from keeping his mouth shut.  
_

_She looked into his eyes, which weren't covered by his thick glasses. "Two years. Sure, I promise."_

_"It's not to late, Luf," he glanced back, "I know you won't go back now, but I'm sure there's no way in hell that they will let you back in after this."_

_"I don't care." She leaned over the small raft and gave Coby a hug. "Watch Gramps for me."_

_'Yeah, that's what I wanted to do,' he thought rudely. "By then I should be bigger, stronger, and better."_

* * *

_"I will be looking for it," she giggled and he flushed. "Well Coby, I will see ya." She pulled on the rope and set the small raft free from the fort. Waves pulled it out to sea. She waved at him and smiled. "Bye Luffy!" he called back._

_The blonde stepped out and placed his hand on Coby's shoulder. "She's finally leaving."_

The pink haired looked away from her pictures and pulled his arms through his jacket, zipping it up before leaving his tiny room. Outside he passed lieutenants. On deck, he met up with his blond friend. "Waiting for the newspaper?" he questioned with a taunt.

Coby's cheeks flushed. "Wh-What's wrong with knowing what's going on?"

The taller man snickered. "Going on doesn't mean what is Luffy's up too."

"Maybe it does. Everyone has their own descriptions of phases."

"Wow. Nice cover up," he rolled his eyes, "Garp has already gotten it. And from the lack of reaction, I'm guessing she hasn't done nothing."

Coby grinned. When Luffy left, Garp smashed through all of the walls searching for her. Even his dorm wasn't safe from the Old Man's huge destruction figure. Even after a month, the Old Man took his anger out on everyone; even the chefs. Luckily Sengoku put him in a time out, since Garp was about to send a search party to capture his lost princess.

"Do you know what our plans are today?"

The pink haired shrugged his shoulders, and almost got hit by a cannon.

"THAT DAMN BRAT!"

"And there's the reaction. Shall we run?"

"Certainly," Coby nodded and the two escaped inside of the building. "What do you think she did this time?"

"What was it she did last?"

"Warlord...that one with the zombies, I believe? Or Sandy. Wasn't there another one? Maybe..."

"Then...maybe angered a Yonko?"

"Could," Helmeppo nodded and then stuck out his tongue, "Another one for your scrapbook."

"Shut it."

"You are making this too little, Pinky."

"Why do I even talk to you?"

He shrugged his shoulders, "Cuz Luffy isn't here and I'm pretty sure you don't want to go to Garp about your problems. Unless, of course, you want to be thrown overboard."

"Don't remind me."

"Kinda too late."

"Buzz off."

"You were the one who followed me."

"..."

"Man, the day just started and I'm already winning."

Coby turned and started walk away. "I"m going to breakfast, if you want some, better follow me, you twat."

"Oh wow, such an insult coming from a guy like you. I wonder what Luffy would think of your month now."

They entered the dining room of the ship, and imminently they wanted to leave but the doors already closed. Garp was there, sitting at the head of the table. His plate was the fullest; not to mention the rice crackers he was eating from the boxes. He was sitting there with a frown. That newspaper article must have really annoyed him. Coby could only wonder what Luffy destroyed this time.

"My granddaughter attacked Enies Lobby yesterday."

"Oh..."

"...shiet..."

"Her bounty doubled to..."

Those around him gasped at the amount. Now all marines were going after her. Even if he wanted to contact her, as a friend, it was useless, but they made a promise that he would keep. And it was already too late for her to turn back; which is what Coby believe Garp was most upset about.

Damn it, Luffy.

But he still couldn't help but smile. For doing something like that, he was proud to be her friend. That's his Luffy. Maybe he could do it if he tried. Helmeppo slapped his shoulder. Maybe he shouldn't think of that.

Garp looked down at the newspaper. _'She's one hella of a girl...if only he was here...Maybe he could have kept her under better control...'_


	6. Chapter 6

She stood in front of the gravestone. It was much smaller than she remembered it. The stone was slanted and dull. There were no words, but she knew who was buried here. If it wasn't for her, the person wouldn't even be buried here.

"I left that place... I broke our promise."

_'You had other promises you could break, though.'_

"I know. I will achieve the other ones, but that one. It's too late. They will never yet me back in."

_'Because you chose to not go through it.'_

"To have a life of boredom? I was only there as a replacement...for you." The other voice wasn't there. It was an ever looping debate she had. Ever since she chose to follow her dream instead of this promise. She knew that he would never utter such harsh words, but her mind played tricks on her. The other voice wouldn't said these things.

_'Whose fault is that?'_

"...Mine. I'm sorry. You were never meant to follow me. Why didn't you just let me fall? You could have been the best marine that Garp wanted. He was left with just me."

* * *

_The moonlight shined on the ground. Leaves under her feet cracked as she stumbled against the fallen trees. The grass started disappearing as rock took place. She came to a halt. A rushing river in front of her. One foot in would mean death. She looked upstream for a way across. There was a fallen tree- a bridge to the other side. She smiled. _

_The little girl hurried over to the dead tree. The underside of it was wet and it's bark was missing. The rest of it was unstable with cracks in it's side and uneven surface. The girl smiled as she found a way across. She placed her feet on the bark, which broke off. Her tongue stuck out behind her lips. The girl pulled her other foot up and rested it infront of her first foot until she was steadied.  
_

_She was determine to get across; to find the secret base. But her next step was too close to the edge. She tilted and hurried to get steadied, but this failed. She ended up falling in the freezing water. Her hands went above, scrambling for air. "Help!" she called out as water entered her mouth. _

_The water pulled her closer to the cliff._

_She tried finding a place to handle on, but no prevail. Waterfall was up ahead- rocks located right under it. She knew this exactly because that was their path for hunting. "HELP!" she screamed once more. A shadow shifted in the treeline, and quickly a boy appeared. He grunted and ran to the stream. "Luf!" he yelled. He got to the side and reached out to pull her, but she wasn't close enough._

_The black haired boy grunted. "Fuck," he uttered under his breath. He could only think of one thing. _

_Splash. _

_The black haired girl was pushed out of the water. But it was too late. _

_The water pushed. He fell._

* * *

The voice echoed once more, _'I had to protect you.'_

"You didn't have to. Look what happened. You are lying in the ground, while I'm here."

_'Did anyone ever say you had to fulfill my promises? The one made between the Old Man and me? He never asked for you as a replacement.'_

"I was just following you. If that didn't happen, you would have been the greatest marine that Garp wanted..."

_'Just you doubting yourself leaves me with unrest, Luf. Follow your own dreams instead of finishing others.'_

The voice was inside of her head. She wanted it to be angry with her, just like she was angry with herself. But she could only make herself sad with this debate that only ended with her pitying herself. She was the one who took up the burdens, the promises. He didn't want that, but she did it anyways.

_'Lu, you are my sister, I could never ask any more of you.'_

"I miss you, Ace." She bowed her head in front of the gravestone. For once, the eternal debate came to a compromise. Maybe coming to her home island was a good idea; even though she hasn't returned since that fateful day. Maybe this was peace. Freedom she always wanted.

"Luffy! The ship's loaded!"

"Give her some time. She probably hasn't been home in years."

She grinned, "It's okay! I just have one more stop!" She turned back to the gravestone. "Watch over me," she smiled softly and left. A bottle of sake and a lone cup sat in front of the gravestone.

Now she had one more promise to fulfill before entering the Grand Line. '_See you soon, Coby.'_

_The End_

**Okay, this story was more like a first draft (I wanted to write a larger story with Fem!LuffyxCoby and this short thing came to mind). Sorry for my mistakes; and hopefully this answered all of your answers! Thanks for all of the support, Ami-tanxxx, konan248, EpicAsianOrangeTiger26, Son of Whitebeard, iiILurvePancakesii, and those who followed! **


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